[mrwalker]

Originally Posted by an_and

Well.. the innova is the leader here.. but Xylo's fast catching up. I wonder why do they still sell the Tavera?

Hmmm maybe because it sells an average 1,000 per month, unlike, say, Jazz

[rove_drives]

I have been watching figures of Jazz & Punto and what strategy the sales and marketing team adopt to bail out their products.

Jazz - pricing went horribly bad. Unless it is adjusted to around Rs 50,000 it doesnt looks like the sale numbers would ever cross 1000 again. i20 sales figures would be giving them some confidence that they need to correct only by that much and not almost a lakh which many reviewers and critics have suggested.

Punto - oh this beauty machine is having all bad makeup. This gaadi is 10/10 on underlying machine, 9/10 on looks. But very bad on interiors. And thats why needs an attention sooner than later. Fiat cannot afford to wait till 1year and launch an upgrade in mid 2010. I m sure that the bad name would have established by then.

Just see what happens when Figo, Polo and Beat get launched. Do people really buy these 2 cars or decide on newer ones.

[ACM]

valid point rove.

Actually the Punto need an interior quality relook ASAP. but is will be hard with the qtty of parts that they would already have in stock. They have gone aggressive on pricing and for that they would have had to give qtty commitments to parts vendors.

And it is not as if they discovered the quality only at the end just before launch, for they would have approved a golden sample of each piece of plastic that went into the car before the orders were placed.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Any sales figures for Premier Rio? Has it sold anything at all?

Did a bit of googling, and i am not even able to find a website for this 'car'!

[coolkurt]

Come on guys..the interiors on the Punto are not THAT bad. I have a honda civic and I can still say that my punto has decent interiors. Design is pretty good, its just the fit & finish that is found lacking. My take on the punto's dismal sales is that it's due to 1 of the most important factors in d indian market - 'word of mouth brand image'. Fiat of the old has such a bad reputation. One of my friends is in the process of buying a new hatch. When I recommended the Punto, he simply said 'not Fiat' and wrote it off. My retort was 'how can you write off a car without even checking it out?' This is what goes on in the mind of an average indian buyer.
The best way for Fiat is to ensure that sales are stable at one level. Once there are enough puntos and lineas on the road, people will notice the cars and interest will get converted to sales.

[sdp1975]

Agree with kurt. Don't think the diminishing Punto sales has to do primarily with the interiors. It's the bad reputation plus the Manza that's affecting Punto sales.

When I purchased my Punto - some of my colleagues at work were not sure of what car it was ! Fiat has to beef up it's advertisement campaign and it's brand awareness as well.

[coolkurt]

@sdp
Yes, that does seem to be the case. It does sadden me to see such a good car having mediocre sales.
In delhi atleast Fiat are doing their best..I see their ads everyday! I am singlehandedly trying to improve their reputation
Am sure you and all the other Punto owners are doing the same too!

[NutsNBolts]

@sdp & coolkurt. Punto and Linea are good cars in their own. What we need to remember is that past decade of dis-service provided by Fiat. I think they are still not sure of handling the A.S.S part, that is why the MoU with Tata. They surely have their eyes set on long term gains than immediate short term gains. If they manage to survive with current setup for next 2-3 years, they will be on an upswing, not immediately.

[oss]

Fiat should start thinking of having a better sales & service partner - some one like Carnation or may be Bosch for servicing their cars. Tata's may not help Fiat cause in improving their image.

[nairrk]

Alternatively Fiat should start thier own sales/service centres instead of partnering with some one,which could well prove more sales and better service to their customers. IMO,TATA on thier own are very busy with their brand cars and may be finding difficult to give 100% attendence to FIAT cars/customers?

[mkh]

I think the highlight of the past few months sales:
Spark numbers! The car really deserved to be bought and was below its merit. I can see people appreciating the feedback from owners and also the price cuts. I am anticipating it to go up and probably challenge santro on sales numbers soon

i-10 is clearly an unchallenged car in its segment. Looking at the number of i-10's one can count only in bangalore roads...its no wonder the charts are on fire for this winner from hyundai
For people who say that there is no segment leader from hyundai- this is the one as its a different league than the alto

Amazing to note that by the time the competition catches up, hyundai already earns huge from the early sales of its cars, the i-10 and the i-20 are earning a lot for them till anything comes along and challenges them.
Another instance is Santro Vs Wagon R: with the heavy discounts on Wagon R, and almost nothing on the Santro, the latter is clearly earning more for its maker in terms of profits even though sales are lower.

Surprise:( for me)
Still after so many yeaaars and the odd design the Wagon R sells high numbers, but the Ritz is suffering mainly cause of its shape.
Weird cause if the shape was a factor, Wagon R should also sell less...its mostly cause of the huge discounts on the Wagon R that its still perched at the top.
Getz is on its way out, sad cause its not THAT bad compared to swift that it sells like less than 1/20th...weird...

Just wondering looking at the palio and fusion WHO ARE THE FOLKS who still buy the Palio...( great car but no longer worth it...!) and the FUSION....

My predictions( and this is just mine, probably also a little of my wishes based on my assessment of cars only up to the sedans)
1. Spark to hit higher numbers in the coming months in this segment
2. i-10 to carry its run looks like till maybe the Beat and Figo come along..
3. Swift Dzire to be challenged by manza
4. Punto is going to get killed unless Fiat top heads sit and really apply their heads
5. City..well..no challenge and will carry on this way till someone comes out with a real winner( imagine folks- Linea in the hands of Maruti/hyundai dealer network...THAT would only be a possible contender!)
6. i20 will be a cash cow for hyundai, nothing coming soon that would stop its momentum, at least not for 6 months or so..
7. Linea will save FIATS ship for sure, but not put it where it really deserves to be- which is to challenge the city and rule the segment..another case of under sold car from FIAT big time..

[twinblades]

The Fiat marketing team needs to work on their paper adds. My father would not have bought his GP had I not insisted that he go down to the show room and check the car out. The paper add campaign does not do justice to the car. Fiat needs to work on it A.S.S of its existing customers so that customers in turn can help boost awareness of their products.

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by mkh

Weird cause if the shape was a factor, Wagon R should also sell less.

Initially, Wagon-R was also a low seller. Customers became used to its design and now it sells well with its USPs like space, mileage, visibility, *** etc against its shape.

Ritz also has all these USPs. Its sales will pick up after some time, for sure.

Originally Posted by mkh

Getz is on its way out, sad cause its not THAT bad compared to swift that it sells like less than 1/20th...weird...

Getz is not that bad compared to Swift in terms of performance, but ofcourse not in terms of style and mileage. Outdated designs like Getz will sell in India only if it is from Maruti! Otherwise, it should have some advantages like price or mileage that will cater to mass market.

Originally Posted by mkh

My predictions( and this is just mine, probably also a little of my wishes based on my assessment of cars only up to the sedans)

And in the sedan segment, Verna is definitely losing its grip.

[coolkurt]

I don't expect the Punto to 'get killed' or rather fail. I just feel that the sales will stabilise around the 1200 mark which just isnt as much as this stunner should sell.
Perhaps a year down the line, Fiat's rep will improve and thngs will start looking up.

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by mkh

but the Ritz is suffering mainly cause of its shape.

Maruti is selling 5-6K Ritz every month. In what dictionary such figures are considered suffering? Each and every model from Maruti doesn't have to put sales charts on fire.